roasted ham & vegetable pot pie

Having an easy, tasty pot pie recipe in your back pocket is like knowing your ABC’s – in an attempt to free us all from the shackles of a recipe – meet pot pie 101 – and for the record, you can cast whatever you like in the lead, as long as it’s been seared, sizzled, roasted or toasted – that’s where the flavour is. Like what, you ask? Well, this time around, I’m going with leftover ham, but for the sake of clarity – how about chicken, turkey, pork, beef, fish, shrimp, scallops, clams or a mess of roasted vegetables – ’cause I was thinking that as long as you keep the integrity of the saucey stuff intact, why couldn’t you add whatever the heck you like in place of the typical chicken – well, I said – of course I could, can, will and did!

So, master the saucey stuff – choose your “chicken” of choice and go get yourself a bad-ass reputation for the meanest pot pie on the planet – ’cause since you got out of pot pie prison, you’ve never made the same one twice – now that’s some serious pot pie production. And don’t stop at the pie, what covers the pie can be switched up just the same – mashed potatoes, sliced potatoes, grated potatoes, sweet potatoes, buttermilk biscuits, dumplings, dough, pastry, breadcrumbs, grated cheeses – it’s your pie, cover it with whatever the heck you want. Betcha’ didn’t think you’d be getting your pot pie PhD by night fall!

4. Let the mixture simmer while you whisk together the following in a small bowl and add to the pot:

1 can evaporated milk

1/4 cup flour

5. Cook until the mixture thickens. Remove from heat and stir in:

2-3 cups cooked ham, cubed

1+ cup grated cheese – swiss, mozzarella, cheddar

6. Cover & keep warm while you prep the potato topping.

potato topping

2-3 potatoes, scrubbed and thinly slice

olive oil

salt & pepper

First, clean up the edges of the pot with a spatula. Arrange the potato slices over the ham mixture making a tight circle. Work from the outside in, around the edge of the pan overlapping the potatoes as you go. Drizzle the top with olive oil, spread it around using a pastry brush and season with salt, a good crack of pepper and sprinkling of paprika. Bake in a preheated oven for 45 minutes or until the potatoes are golden brown and the filling is bubbling. Let stand for a few minutes before serving.